Week of free fares coming to Metro-North's Pascack Valley, Port Jervis lines soon

Who said New York and New Jersey can’t get along ?

New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy’s big “Thank You” to NJ Transit riders — a week of free fares — will extend to Metro-North riders on the Pascack Valley and Port Jervis lines, a spokesman for the Metropolitan Transportation Authority said this week.

Rides will be free along the east of Hudson lines from Aug. 26 through Sept. 2 and monthly pass holders will receive a 25% discount on their September monthly pass.

The fare break follows months of service disruptions and commuting nightmares along the northeast rail lines NJ Transit shares with Amtrak, the busiest commuting corridor in the U.S.

“As we work diligently with Amtrak to investigate and address the issues that have occurred this summer, especially on the Northeast Corridor, we hope this fare holiday offers our commuters some relief,” Murphy said Thursday.

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NJ Transit operates the Pascack Valley and Port Jervis lines under a contract with Metro-North. The lines primarily serve commuters from Orange and Rockland counties with stops from Pearl River to Spring Valley on the Pascack Valley Line and Suffern to Port Jervis on the Port Jervis line.

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The partnership has endured despite the occasional public spat over service disruptions and crowded trains. In 2018, Metro-North President Catherine Rinaldi threatened to withhold payments to NJ Transit after trains were regularly being canceled on the two lines.

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Murphy has promised to investigate the “root causes” of this summer’s service disruptions while NJ Transit and Amtrak increase the frequency of inspections and repairs.

This article originally appeared on Rockland/Westchester Journal News: Week of free fares coming to Metro-North's Pascack Valley, Port Jervis lines soon